- Feb 4, 2016
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What are the best Bluetooth codecs? aptX, AAC, LDAC and more explained
Get to know your aptX from your AAC
What are the best Bluetooth codecs? aptX, AAC, LDAC and more explained
Do you know your aptX from your LDAC? You will after reading this explainer
Bluetooth is everywhere: in phones, headphones, speakers, TVs, games consoles and smartwatches... basically, if it's powered then chances are it uses Bluetooth. This ubiquitous technology lets devices communicate with each other wirelessly, so you can send fitness data, images and – most importantly – music through the air.
In this guide, we'll explain everything you need to know about each widely available Bluetooth codec so that you can understand the differences between them and know how to benefit from the better ones.
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So for a Bluetooth codec to, for example, handle a CD-quality file losslessly (without losing any information), it needs to be capable of a bitrate of 1411kbps. Bear that in mind when you see the codec capabilities below...
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The first generation of devices that support LC3 has launched. But because both the source device and what you listen through will need to support LC3, it's a way off being a mainstream proposition.
Codec Max bitrate Max bit depth Max sample rate SBC 320kbps 16-bit 48kHz AAC 264kbps 16-bit 44.1kHz aptX 352kbps 16-bit 48kHz aptX HD 576kbps 24-bit 48kHz aptX Lossless 1200kbps 24-bit 96kHz LDAC 990kbps 24-bit 96kHz LC3 345kbps 32-bit 48kHz
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